Wednesday, October 31, 2012

If you’ve worked in restaurants before, you know that every
night before service the staff sits down to what’s called the “family meal.”
One of the younger cooks is usually charged with scraping together something
filling and, more importantly, not expensive. It was during one of these
meals that I first had adobo.

When I worked at the Carnelian Room in the late 80’s, much
of the kitchen crew was Filipino, so chicken and pork adobo was a very
common dinner. One of the dishwashers made a particularly great version, and I fell in
love with the bold, simple flavors. I also remember being pretty annoyed that
the dishwashers there were better cooks than I was at the time,
but that’s another story.

Anyway, I happened to have some duck legs around last week, and all it
took was a well-timed email wishing for adobo to inspire this video. I
understand that most of you will not use duck for this, but if you do, be sure
to save the fat.

Duck fat is prized by chefs, and more heart-healthy than
people realize. It can be used for just about anything you’d normally fry
in butter or vegetable oil. I roasted some Brussels spouts with mine, but it
also will make just about the best homefries you’ve ever tasted.

Like I said in the video, no duck, no problem. If you can simmer it
in a sauce, it will work in this recipe. Because of the high soy sauce content,
be careful about over reducing, but other than that, not much can go wrong.
This is cheap, easy, and very flavorful, which is why it makes for such a
great “family meal.” Enjoy!

Monday, October 29, 2012

After five years, and a few thousand requests, I’m finally
posting my “ultimate” ranch dressing recipe. What makes it the “ultimate?”
Nothing, except that’s what I’m calling it, and in the world of dips and
dressings, that makes it so. By the way, ignore those other roughly 65,000
“ultimate” recipes; this one is the actual “ultimate” ranch dressing.

It’s been ages since I made homemade ranch dressing, and I’d
forgotten how much better it is than the bottled stuff. Don’t get me wrong; I
like high-fructose corn syrup, artificial flavorings, and preservatives as much
as the next low-information voter, but this really is significantly more
delicious.

As you’ll see, I used some crème fraiche (which we showed
you how to make in this video), but relax, sour cream will work perfectly.
However, I do believe the buttermilk is crucial. That some of my peers are
calling their ranch dressings “ultimate” without using buttermilk, really makes
me question their grasp of the word “ultimate.”

Anyway, hyperbole aside, this really is the best ranch
dressing I’ve ever had, and I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Friday, October 26, 2012

When I was asked to join some of my fellow foodies on
YouTube, to produce a video for a special seasonal playlist called “Halloween Sweet Treats,” I sat down and considered all thescary sweets
recipes in my repertoire. After several minutes of deep thought, I realized I
had nothing.

Not to sound like a curmudgeon, but sticking broken pretzels
into a marshmallow and calling it a “scary spider,” just isn’t my thing. So,
instead of trying to figure out how to make a chocolate truffle look like a
bleeding eyeball, Imade a batch of pumpkin cinnamon rolls. They may not be
scary (what’s the opposite of scary?), but they are seasonal, and incredibly
delicious.

I used to joke that when Halloween/Thanksgiving time rolls
around, the only thing a chef has to do to make a recipe seasonal is to add
some pumpkin to it. Chili with a spoon of pumpkinstirred in? Halloween
chili! Dinner rolls with a spoon of pumpkin kneaded into the dough?
Thanksgiving dinner rolls!

Well, that’s exactly what I did here, and while it may be
formulaic, it also produced the best cinnamon rolls I’ve ever tasted. One key
is a nice soft, sticky dough. Be sure to only add enough flour so that the
dough just barely pulls away from the side of the bowl as it kneads.

You can certainly embellish by adding some chopped walnuts
or pecans to the cinnamon-sugar layer, but since I decided to garnish with
pumpkin seeds, I went sans nuts. Anyway,
despite not being very horrifying, these really would make aspecial treat at
any Halloween party. I hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

I’m going to be posting a seasonal pumpkin recipe on Friday,
and let me tell you, it wasn’t easy deciding on which food wish to do. I get
tons of pumpkin requests this time of year, and while I’m not going to spoil
the surprise, I can tell you that the venerable pumpkin roll didn’t make the
cut. Maybe next year I’ll do my take, but in the meantime, here’s a video from
my friends at Allrecipes.com, featuring one of their highest-rated versions.
Enjoy!

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

As I enjoyed this very tasty Brussels sprouts with warm
bacon dressing recipe, I was reminded Thanksgiving side dish decision time is
rapidly approaching. It’s that annual dilemma where we’re forced to choose five
or six recipes among hundreds of potentially awesome options.

What makes this decision so tough is that you want things
that are traditional and comforting, but at the same time, want to keep the
menu fresh and interesting. You love those buttery mashed potatoes, and yet
you’ve wanted to make twice-baked potatoes for years. You always make Grandma’s
chestnut stuffing, but that spicy cornbread version you saw on Pinterest sure
looks amazing. What do you do?

Do what I do; keep the starchy cornerstones classic, and
switch up the vegetable sides instead. Go ahead and do your favorite and
familiar potato, stuffing, and gravy recipe; but when it comes to tired old
dishes like green bean casserole, or peas and carrots, let your freak flag fly.

As long as you have a few comfort food favorites around,
people will forgive a little experimentation, and this creative, un-cooked
Brussels sprouts recipe would fit the bill. I love the contrast between the
raw, crunchy vegetable and the rich, smoky, sweet and sour dressing. This would
do any turkey proud.

While I decided to go raw this time, you can certainly turn
this into a hot side by giving it a quick, stir-fry in a large skillet. Just a
minute or two, until it starts to wilt, and you’re good to go. Anyway, I’m not
sure if I made your side dish selection simpler or more complicated by showing
you this new and exciting offering, but I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You
always do. Enjoy!

Saturday, October 20, 2012

I don’t do a lot of sandwich recipes here on Food
Wishes, mostly because, well, they’re sandwiches, but today I’m making an
exception. On Thursday, I participated in a sandwich making contest sponsored
by Columbus Salumeria, and I wanted to share what turned out to be the winning
concoction.

Columbus sponsored the #TopWichSF event to promote their new line of
Farm to Fork Naturals, and things got off to a appetizing start as Sean
Timberlake, from Punk Domestics and Hedonia, treated us to an array of small
bites he created using these great new products.

Photo courtesy of Columbus Salame

I really loved his wonderful
Waldorf-filled endive topped with strips of oven-crisped salami. With
entertaining season right around the corner, I highly recommend you add this to
your repertoire.

I was grateful for the energy and inspiration the tasty
bites provided, as I was up against two very worthy opponents in Michael
Procopio from Food for the Thoughtless, and Lynda Balslev from TasteFood.

The
competition was held at the Hotel Vitale, and started with a romantic pedicab
ride to the Ferry Building across the street. We were given 10 minutes and $10
to buy any additional ingredients we wanted to accessorize our sandwiches with.

My idea was to do a smoked turkey and teleme sandwich,
topped with some kind of meat relish made with soppressata and fruit. I ended
up finding some beautiful pluots, and used the rest of my cash to get a small
bag of pine nuts. They were raw, but I figured I could toast them on the panini
press, which I knew was hot and waiting. I was gifted a few grapes which while delicious, played no part in my creation.

We had just 20 minutes to build our sandwiches, while a
distinguished panel of five judges looked on. I was a little nervous to begin
with, and knowing there were representatives from YumSugar, Chow, SFWeekly, and
Tasting Table there, only added to it. The time went by incredibly fast, which
made my fellow competitors' work that much more impressive.

Michael bought some bone marrow butter and used it to toast
a turkey, soppressata and apple panini. A brilliant idea, and had time
allowed for a longer, deeper caramelization, it would have crushed my
non-beef-fat-fried offering.

Photo courtesy of Columbus Salame

Lynda did a fennel salami, fig, and goat cheese sandwich,
which she topped with apple slaw, shaved fennel, and her secret ingredient,
fennel pollen. It was a classic combination of flavors, and a great way to show
off the Columbus salami. By the way, check out Lynda’s great recap of the event, where you can see and read more about her beautiful sandwich.

Despite their worthy efforts, the judges awarded my
rustic-looking sandwich the grand prize. I received a dangerously large basket
of salami and other gourmet goodies, as well as $500 cash!

I figured that a two-year’s supply of salami was enough of a prize, so I’m having them donate the
money to the SF Food Bank. I would have just spent the money on more salami
anyway.

A huge thank you to Columbus for inviting me to participate. They have a bunch of great photos on their Facebook page in case you want to check out some more of the action. Also, a sincere thanks to
Michael and Lynda for helping make the event such a fun experience. Enjoy!

Mix relish ingredients and let sit in fridge for 1 hour to
develop flavors. Mix the harissa and mayonnaise; spread on bread. Spread both
sides of bread with teleme cheese and top with turkey. Top with relish, and
serve immediately, or wrap and press with a plate in the fridge for 30 minutes
to compress.

Friday, October 19, 2012

There’s a fairly large population of folks who just don’t
like fish. I’m not talking about people with allergies, but those poor souls
who’s worst nightmare is arriving at a dinner party, only to find out the main
course is fish. Their reasons are as diverse as they are unfortunate.

Well, this broiled red snapper recipe may be just what the
doctor ordered. Normally we don’t want to cover up the delicate flavors of the
seafood, but in this case, we have no choice. It’s not like you can’t tell
you’re eating fish, but close enough.

By the way, the last time I made red snapper, a few people
wondered out loud if that was a wise choice, sustainability-wise. I believe the
variety I used was local and not in danger, but I know it’s on some no-eat lists. However, things may be looking up for red snapper in the Gulf.

I just read that there appears to be an abundant red snapper
population there, and fishermen are anxiously waiting for the bureaucratic powers
that be to raise the limits. You can read more about that here. Of course, this
will work with any white fish, so I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

With the holiday entertaining season getting closer with
each falling leaf, it’s time to start thinking about those easy, yet still kind
of fancy, snack recipes. These sweet, salty, spicy, party nuts are simple to
make, and will rival those expensive blends at the local Foodies-R-Us.

I find this technique much easier than the stovetop pan
method. You’ll get beautiful, perfectly frosted nuts that are roasted evenly,
with no bitter burned spots. Speaking of which, I played it pretty safe with
the cooking times, so you may be able to go a few minutes longer for a deeper
roast, but, don’t get greedy.

By the way, I always upload these videos to YouTube before I
publish the blog post, and I just finished reading the first few comments. Wow,
they sure have some wild imaginations over there! They claim the video is
loaded with innuendos and lowbrow, double entendre-based humor. How dare they!
They’re LOL’ing, ROFL’ing, and LMFAO’ing all over perfectly innocent recipe
directions. It’s nuts.

Monday, October 15, 2012

After using Merguez sausage in this beautiful stuffed acorn squash recipe last year, I got a bunch of emails saying, “I can’t find that
anywhere! Can you show us how to make it?!” I generally ignore those, since it’s
usually just people not looking hard enough (I’m looking at you, Mr. “I can’t
find Panko”).

However, in this case, I realized that Merguez is not
commonly stocked at the grocery store, so I decided to come up with an easy
home version. I didn’t bother with the casing, as these were originally going
to be breakfast patties, but as I mention in the video, I was seduced by a
brioche roll, and ended up going full burger. Happily, it made for a very
memorable lunch.

If you do happen to give this Merguez recipe a try, I hope
you make a double batch and not only experience the amazing burger it produces,
but also use it in/on a number of things. It is wonderful in beans,
frittatas, pastas, soups, and especially crumbled on pizza or flatbread. I really hope you give it a
try soon. Enjoy!

Sunday, October 14, 2012

I was browsing the web for some pumpkin recipe ideas, when
came across this lovely looking stack of pancakes. I clicked the image link
to see who was responsible for such sexy seasonality, and as I watched some
blog called “Food Wishes” load, I realized I'd clicked on one of my
own recipes.

I guess after doing over 750 videos I’m allowed to forget about
one once in a while. Besides, the beautiful photography threw me off.

Anyway, I figured it was the universe’s way of telling me to
repost it, since it’s the perfect time of year to give those flapjacks a
pumpkin makeover. You can get the ingredients, and read the original post here.
Enjoy!

Friday, October 12, 2012

I’m not sure when this relatively new tradition started, but for whatever reason, I like to come up with a new and interesting coleslaw to serve at Thanksgiving. With all the rich, heavy foods that the holiday table brings, I really enjoy the contrast these cold, crisp, bracing salads provide.

I’ve been doing this for five or so years now, and this may
be my favorite version. Just adding the always interesting Asian pear to a standard
coleslaw would’ve been a nice enough touch, but what made this so special was
the subtle heat from the pickled ginger.

I can just imagine how great that piquant punch is going to
work with roasted turkey, and while I still have weeks to wait for official
verification, I’m pretty confident. I’m also confident you’ll be able to find
some pickled ginger, especially if you have any sushi bars near you.

By the way, this is not one of those “make the day before”
coleslaws. You want everything fresh and crisp, and if you leave it overnight,
not only will it get soggy, but it will be way over-marinated. You can make the
dressing beforehand, as well as slice up the ginger and cabbage, but wait until
an hour before the dinner to cut the pear and toss everything together.

Anyway, if you’ve never considered a coleslaw for one of
your holiday side dish selections, I hope this unusual, but very delicious
variation inspires you to give it a try. Enjoy!

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

When ONE.org asked me to help raise awareness about their campaign
to fight chronic malnutrition, using the humble sweet
potato, I had one important question…if I agreed, would I get some kind of tote
bag?

When I was informed there was no tote bag, I decided to
check out their info anyway, and I’m very glad I did. While I was shocked to learn
that millions of children die each year from malnutrition, it was heartening to
learn what a huge difference this delicious “super-food” could make.

To help spread the word, I offer up this colorful, and very
tasty, roasted sweet potato and black bean chili. I really enjoyed this 100%
vegetarian version, and the extra step of roasting the potatoes not only
concentrated the sweet, earthy flavors, but gave the starchy chunks a
marvelously meaty texture.

Anyway, I’m going to sign off so I can go add “Helped Bono fight
childhood malnutrition” to my resume, but I sincerely hope you take a minute and check out
One.org for more information about this sweet potato campaign, as well as sign the nutrition petition. Thank you, and as always, enjoy!

Monday, October 8, 2012

This shining example of what a few well-placed ingredients
can do to a plain piece of meat reminded me of a couple very important things.
By the way, if you’re new to cooking, being reminded of stuff is one of the
best parts.

First of all, it had me recalling the old, “if it doesn’t
have a bone in it, it’s really not a chop.” Of course, search engines being
what they are, we were forced to use the oxymoronic “boneless, center-cut pork
chops” instead of the traffic stunting “pork medallions.” Not a big deal, but
worth mentioning in case you’re ever backed into a corner during a heated,
butchery-related water cooler debate.

Secondly, I remembered I need to redo that demo I did for
another website many years ago, on how to cut your own boneless, center-cut
pork chops, thereby saving some cash. It’s a quick and simple trick, and one
I’m sure many of you will remind me I forgot about in a few weeks.

Anyway, the glossy glaze is really easy, and while there’s
no starch or extra butter involved, it reduces quickly to a thick, rich,
sweet-tart apple syrup. The rosemary and pepper flakes were the perfect accents
for me, but this is a technique that begs for your own personal touches. I hope
you give this simple and very tasty pork “chop” recipe a try soon. Enjoy!

Saturday, October 6, 2012

As you may have noticed, we are smack dab in the middle of televised sports season.
Baseball playoffs are starting (Go Giants!), football season is in full swing
(Go Giants!), and basketball is just around the corner (Go Warriors??), so
you’re going to need some delicious dips to help soak up some of that beer. As
I’ve said before, the cornerstone of any proper game-day buffet is the dip
selection. Here are a few of our favorites. Just click on the recipe name in the caption, and as always, enjoy!

Thursday, October 4, 2012

I always feel a little guilty when I post one of these
technique videos, which is kind of strange since I get just as many “wishes”
for this type of demo, as I do for straight recipes. People seem to like
them, and I’ll get lots of comments asking for more of the same, but there’s
just something about not being able to take a bite out of the final product
that leaves me slightly unsatisfied.

Of course, I could have eaten some more cheese balls at the
end, but you know what I’m saying. Anyway, lack of proper money shot
notwithstanding, I hope this “cheesy” trick helps you master this very basic
and desirable kitchen skill.

By the way, this is about much more than just looking cool.
Depending on the recipe, flipping the food around without having to use a spoon
or spatula can be a big advantage. It’s faster, more effective, and yes, it looks
super cool too. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Way back when, the only way you would’ve found out about a
regional recipe like Chicken Riggies, would have been to eat it while traveling
through Central New York.

You would’ve loved it (because there’s nothing not to
love) and maybe even tried to recreate it when you got home, but more likely it
would have ended up fading into nothing more than a pleasant memory;
referred to as “that rigatoni we had in Utica.”

I’m sure you’ll plan a trip through the lovely Utica/Rome
area of New York State eventually, but in the meantime, I offer up my take on
this thoroughly enjoyable plate of pasta. I think it’s fairly authentic, with
two notable exceptions. I use Marsala instead of the standard white wine, and
use roughly chopped thigh meat, instead of the more popular chicken breasts.

This results in a sauce that seems much richer than it
actually is, and I think you’ll love the subtle sweetness the wine imparts,
which works wonderfully with the heat from the peppers. Of course, as I joke
about in the video, forget how tasty the recipe is…it’s worth making just for
the name alone. What’s for dinner? Chicken Riggies! Riggies? Yes, Riggies!

Anyway, if you’re from Central New York, I hope I did your
venerable recipe proud. If you’re not, I hope you give this gorgeous rigatoni
recipe a try, and experience what only a few decades ago, you may not have ever
heard of. Enjoy!